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Showing posts from February 15, 2015

Sim card database hack gave US and UK spies access to billions of cellphones

International row likely after revelations of breach that could have given NSA and GCHQ the power to monitor a large portion of world’s cellular communications Sim card  Gemalto, the company targeted by the spy agencies, produces 2bn sim cards per year for clients including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon. Photograph: Kimmo Mntyl /Rex Features Share viaShare on Google+ American and British spies hacked into the world’s largest sim card manufacturer in a move that gave them unfettered access to billions of cellphones around the globe and looks set to spark another international row into overreach by espionage agencies. The National Security Agency (NSA) and its British equivalent GCHQ hacked into Gemalto, a Netherlands sim card manufacturer, stealing encryption keys that allowed them to secretly monitor both voice calls and data, according to documents newly released by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. The breach, revealed in documents provided to The Interc

Texas at epicentre of immigration action delay: 'People have been freaking out'

After a judge in the state blocked President Obama’s executive action to shield millions of undocumented immigrants, many locals feel mistrustful of government and confused over what happens next  daca and dapa rally  Ruben Casillas, right, and others show their support during an event on Daca and Dapa immigration relief at the Houston International Trade Center on Tuesday. Photograph: Melissa Phillip/AP The late-night suspension of President Obama’s executive actions on immigration meant a busy day for Abraham Espinosa, combatting conservative fear-mongering and calming disrupted lives. “It’s been crazy, man. A lot of people have been freaking out,” the immigrant advocate said from his office in Houston, where he and his co-workers fielded calls, emails and Facebook messages from worried migrants. “There is a lot of confusion and there’s going to be even more confusion now.” About 350 miles south-west, in the border city of Brownsville, a conservative district judge had dealt

Three CORD Mps suspended for misconduct

Three CORD Members of Parliament Suba’s John Mbadi, Gladys Wanga of Homa Bay and Shinyalu’s Silverse Anami have been suspended from the house business for four days over last year’s chaos in Parliament. The legislators are also required to stay away from the precincts of Parliament for the four days starting Wednesday afternoon. The trio was named by the Speaker Justin Muturi for gross disorderly conduct during the passing of the controversial Security Laws [Amendment] Bill, 2014 at a special sitting last December. (file) The trio was named by the Speaker Justin Muturi for gross disorderly conduct during the passing of the controversial Security Laws [Amendment] Bill, 2014 at a special sitting last December. Muturi invoked standing orders 108 in naming the three after considering a motion on the same moved by Ainamoi MP Benjamin Langat. The three MPs were suspended after the legislators allied to the Jubilee Coalition used their numerical strength to vote for the motion.

Federal judge blocks Obama's plan to shield millions from deportation

Decision by federal judge in Texas gives coalition of 26 states time to pursue lawsuit aimed at stopping president’s executive action on immigration Barack Obama meets young immigrants in the Oval Office of the White House   President Obama meets six young immigrants who would be subject to eventual deportation under a bill passed by the House. Photograph: Evan Vucci/AP A plan to shield millions of people from deportation from the US was frozen on Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security, whose chief stalled the program after a federal judge in Texas ordered its halt late Monday night. Jeh Johnson, the Homeland Security secretary, said that the border control agency has suspended its plan to expand the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) program until further notice, meaning undocumented migrants eligible for protection will not be able to apply as scheduled on Wednesday. The suspension comes one day after district judge Andrew Hanen ordered the injunction
Libya's Arab spring: the revolution that ate its children Four years after Muammar Gaddafi was killed, the high hopes of Libya’s activists have crumbled as Isis fills the vacuum left by scrapping militias  Libyans wave national flags on Martyrs’ Square in Tripoli as hundreds of people demonstrated in support of the UN-brokered dialogue between warring factions. Photograph: Hamza Turkia/Hamza Turkia/Xinhua Press/Corbis Chris Stephen  in Tunis Monday 16 February 2015 12.02 EST Last modified on Monday 16 February 2015 12.19 EST Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Share on LinkedIn Share on Google+ Shares 73 “It was better under Gaddafi,” says the young Libyan student, studying the froth bubbling over the top of his cappuccino in a cafe in Tunis as he contemplates the revolution that swept  Muammar Gaddafi  from power four years ago. “I never thought to say this before, I hated him, but things were better then. At lea